Comments on: American Express Purchase Protection Perk

By: Lui

Lui — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:57:34 +0000

I used this policy one. We purchased a Flat Screen almost two years ago. A white line showed up at the top of the screen. I called, they asked questions about the price of the item and I didn’t have the reciept, she pulled it up on the system and subtracted the tax. And that was the amount they refunded my account. She said I was lucky, it was 15 days left and then it would have been out of the extended coverage. And I did not have to send the item to them either, but we just use it as a computer screen because the white line is annoying while watching tv.

By: Raj

Raj — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 15:59:29 +0000

Wow that is sick.. I lost a phone while I was traveling in a local train while visiting India. It might have dropped from my pocket when I was getting on it. So how do I claim the loss so that they don’t come up with lame excuses that the item was not safe guarded properly?
Should I say some one picked my pocket and it was theft? Any ideas greatly appreciated need help badly..

By: alex

alex — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 20:24:41 +0000

As Brent said, read the fine print. They can skirt this provision quite easily, IMO. For example, my wife’s phone was stolen at work recently. While she had it in a “safe” place, an area where employees leave their belongingg, her personal compartment did not have a lock on it. AMEX did not cover the purchase and had the gall to tell me this was not “theft”.

Such is life. I’m moving on, but have a much lower opinion of AMEX because of this experience.

By: Erin

Erin — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 16:57:32 +0000

Abuse of the policy like this is why Amex keeps raising their fees. The program is meant to cover accidental damage. When the same dog eats multiple pairs of shoes it is no longer an accident. Amex shouldn’t be expected to pay for this. I hope they cut you off.

By: Brent

Brent — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:48:45 +0000

I had the same problem, left a headset on my last air flight and was only 1 month old. After filing a claim I was denied because I did not safe guard or was reasonable secure. Seams like they can get out of about any loss with this explanation. If any help I called customer service and to cancel my card and gave me 25,000 miles to stay on so maybe can get something for your (loss).

By: Alejo

Alejo — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 21:15:21 +0000

Back to the future!!! VCR???

By: steve smith

steve smith — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 17:25:49 +0000

A VCR…was this 20 years ago?

By: sandy

sandy — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 23:12:22 +0000

good luck getting paid on a claim from AMEX my kid had her ipod for 3 weeks when it was stolen at a park. AMEX said it item wasnt reasonably secure.

By: Richard

Richard — Thu, 12 May 2011 23:24:18 +0000

They are incredible! Claim was approved within 12 hours with no additional documentation required. Did not require me to ship back my $500 phone!

By: m johnson

m johnson — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 03:07:41 +0000

My daughter got a rescue Border Collie @ Christmas that has eaten at least 10 pairs of shoes, an ipod, and 2 volleyballs. most of the items were replaced by Amex purchase protection.I buy almost exclusively now on Amex. I have a box in the basement filled with the chewed up items in case I need to show them to Amex.

By: Xfactor

Xfactor — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 21:14:45 +0000

Loss is covered for Amex Platinum and Centurian members.

By: Simon

Simon — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:12:49 +0000

Re AMEX protection, the definition of stolen is different from how you and I might define it. For example, if I put my cell phone (purchased using AMEX) down on a shelf in bookstore, leave the aisle and return a minute later to find the phone gone, that is not considered theft by AMEX. Your claim will be denied. If this ever happens to you be sure that you report that you did not leave the vicinity of the item for the claim to qualify as a theft and therefore be covered by the AMEX purchase protection plan.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 16:37:53 +0000

I just put through a claim for an i-phone 4 lost or stolen in France. It was my son’s 21st birthday present and 4 days into a college trip it is gone. According to AMEX “Our records indicate your loss it a result of an item having been lost or misplaced and not due to a covered incident under the policy. My son was at the Louve and the phone was gone. He didn’t report it to the police because he was on a class trip and visiting the police in Paris wasn’t in the schedule. Any advice? It cost us $740.94 to replace the phone because we weren’t eligible for a new phone.

By: jojo

jojo — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 03:38:22 +0000

[Revised my previous comment when i came to know that all Visa's are not created equal]

Stay away from British airways Chase visa purchase protection !!!

It doesn’t cover accidental damage due to dropping etc

Amex has a better policy !!!
Visa is confusing as it is upto the bank to provide the benefits.

Charles Schwab covers accidental damage due to dropping whereas chase does not !!!

British Airways Visa has the following restrictions , very improbable situations
From FAQ

What items are covered by Purchase Security?
Your eligible purchases are protected against damage due to the following:
• Fire, smoke, explosion, riot, or vandalism.
• Windstorm, lightning, hail, rain, sleet, or snow.
• Aircraft, spacecraft, or other vehicles.
• Theft (except from autos or motorized vehicles).
• Accidental discharge of water or steam from household plumbing.
• Sudden accidental damage from electric current. (This benefit does not apply to electronic
components.)

By: BOB

BOB — Fri, 21 May 2010 01:48:23 +0000

I’m sure AMEX isn’t losing any money on this, it probably works as a tax loss for all the money they make.

Probably less than 1% of card members use this benefit (who reads fine print), and they probably take a percent of a percent of each purchase and throw it into a fund. AMEX charges merchants hefty fees, no? I’m sure some gets kicked back into these programs.

When people get a benefit paid like this they become a loyal lifetime card member, something all the advertising in the world can’t buy. They also tell others about this benefit and they become members. AMEX isn’t stupid. Believe me, if there were issues the program would be long gone. Its around for decades.

The incidents I had they actually thanked me for making the claim and said don’t hesitate to make a valid claim in the future. I bought 2 LCDs that broke and the company went bankrupt and didn’t honor the warranty. AMEX stepped up to the plate and paid me for both. I never use any other card now except AMEX. So they essentially made a customer for life, and if you do the math it cost them nothing.